"Let me have a try," said Rowan in a lighthearted tone, as if they were solving some paper puzzle in the newspaper. Maura raised her eyebrow but made no cutting remark. "Mage Ashworth, would you be so kind as to direct red runes straight at the shield?"
"It won't go through, you know," said Ashworth, but obliged, sketching with a chalk-covered hand.
"I know. Keep a constant stream of magic when you hit it, please. As strong as you can get."
Ashworth added empowering sigils and clapped her hands. The rune flashed red. Power erupted from the outlet, striking the dome, scattering ripples along its surface. The prolonging sigils in the rune's locks activated and the burst of energy continued, and the ripplings persisted. Rowan waited. It didn't take long for Portendorfer's inferno to explode again, sending another flurry of ripples that crossed over Ashworth's. Rowan clapped his hands and threw them out. The ground rumbled and a rock tunnel emerged, reaching at the barrier -- and straight through it.
His arms trembled. His breathing became strained as he maintained the burst.
"Burst works?" Seiren said in disbelief. Surely if the shield blocked runes and flash, it could easily block burst as well.
"It's not the burst. There's only so much magic the shield can block. Portendorfer's flash power is insane. We just need enough rune on top. We can overload it." Rowan panted, unable to resist a grin as his eyes gleamed with excitement. With a strained breath, he released the magic. The stones crumbled away and the shield reformed itself. "They're underestimating us."
"And watching us," said Maura in a low voice, which throbbed with fury.
Seiren's back tingled. She turned and met Pollin's dead green eyes. The same pale violet sheen rippled before him as if the illusion was on the brink of failing.
"Come on, Nithercott. If we're to get to Pollin, we need to get through this."
Seiren tugged out her paper and chalk with shaking hands. All around, the scents of sweat, gunpowder, and death were stifling, punctuated with explosions and the rumble of collapsing buildings. All this at the hands of Pollin and the king's mages. She copied the rune she'd seen Ashworth draw, including the same prolonging sigils. With a nod from Ashworth and Maura, she snapped her fingers. Magic infused into the sketch; it glowed red and exploded forwards from the outlet, striking the same site as the others. The next time Portendorfer's flash scorched its surface, the rippling hit a crescendo -- and the shield peeled away.
Rowan clapped his hands. Flames coursed through the hole, encircling the defect, and burst outwards. The shield shimmered and faltered, easing away like flames on paper.
Seiren looked up, sweat trickling down her face. The protective sheen over Pollin flickered away, revealing a second figure standing immediately behind him in his shadows; she couldn't make out his features. Beside Pollin stood a curvy, small woman with dark blonde hair in a side plait, a round face, and the same serious dark brown eyes as Seiren and Madeleine.
The world turned silent around Seiren.
People around spoke words to her, but their voices were far away, drowned in an eternal, deafening ringing. Through the hazy fog, the heated voices began to make sense to Seiren's ears.
"Kristen Harred?!" said Maura in disbelief.
"That treacherous bitch," said Ashworth with vehemence.
"That's not possible," Maura whispered, her icy confidence shattered.
The other mage beside Pollin stepped forward to get a better view. Light fell on a bulbous nose, pockmarked features, and pale eyes against dark skin, one of which was swollen shut and bruised. The fateful night came flooding back to Seiren. The smell of death. Her anguished scream. Madeleine's glassy-eyed stare, lifeless. The wrench of loss tearing through her heart.
Seiren collapsed to her knees, numb.
"She's standing there clear as day, Maura. Guess once a traitor, always a traitor, dead or alive."
"Why's he there?" Seiren said faintly.
Maura gave her a startled look, as if just realising Seiren was still there.
"This explains a lot. The resilient barrier. The elevation of king's mages' power," said Ashworth. "That explains everything."
"Doesn't explain the push for war, though. Kristen Harred was never a particularly strong advocate for war," said Maura in a low voice. "If anything, she disliked the idea of forcibly using mages in war like chess pieces. She held a lot of public appeals during her years as king's mage until she died."
"Yeah, 'died'." Ashworth sounded less worried than Maura. "She's as bad as the rest of them. Their little precious, protected circle."
"And it doesn't explain how her runes were breached in Acrise."
"Oh yes, it does."
Maura and Ashworth whipped around, weapons drawn. Kommora Haigh's wrinkled face was triumphant and furious at the same time, glaring daggers at the faraway palace balcony.
"How did you find us here, Kommora?" said Maura, straightening up.
"Tracker rune." Kommora allowed herself a smirk before her face turned grim. "The king's mages have been siphoning Karma's rune production and ferrying it across the border to Hanna. It was only a matter of time they also shipped over runes that can breach Acrise. I don't know why, but those bastards wanted the walls breached. They wanted war. We played right into their hands, the sly traitors."
"She's not a traitor!" Seiren said furiously. Kommora looked down and merely gave her a pitying look. "She must be threatened or under a spell. She couldn't possibly be working with the other king's mages. Rinoa Gruger can do runes. It's probably an indigo. They probably kept her prisoner all these years--"
"She seems pretty willing to protect Pollin from where I can see," said Ashworth without sympathy.
"Rinoa Gruger's indigo runes aren't that remarkable," said Kommora.
"He killed her! I saw him! He's the Hannan rogue!"
The state mages broke off, staring at Seiren. Rowan stepped forward. The burst magic crumbled away. He gripped Seiren's shoulder, helping her to her feet and meeting her dark eyes.
Seiren wrenched her gaze away from him, her breath caught in her throat. Her mother hadn't seen her yet. Magic flowed from her hands into a funnel above her head, branching outwards into the magical dome. Her feet bathed in the glow of violet runes.
"No, she--" Seiren ran a hand through her hair, incoherent thoughts tearing through her mind as she pushed Rowan away. "No, it can't -- she can't be -- it's not true!"
"Are you sure?" he said in a low voice. "You realise the implication of this? Of accusing Zor Jarsdel? A king's mage?"
"I relive that night every time I shut my eyes, Rowan. I see that face in my sleep. My sister is barely alive because of him. Do you think I could mistake him?!" Her last words ended in a shout.
"Zor Jarsdel. That means they must have been working together the night Kristen Harred allegedly died." Rowan's eyes were stormy with the revelation. "Her death was planned to deceive everyone."
"That would explain everything," said Kommora, triumphant and incensed at the same time. "The death was a fake to enable her to go undercover. The king's mages managed to change Pollin's views. It fits in with the same timeline as when he'd stopped advocating for peace and the rumours of impending war began to spread."
"They're not controlling him?" Maura said. "Not an indigo?"
"No." Kommora's face darkened. "I thought it must be that, but no. I've seen him. He's alive and not under an indigo. Harred's death was faked to generate negativity towards Hanna. They allowed Acrise to be breached to trigger a full-scale war. He wanted this. They all do."
"No..." Seiren whispered, tears coursing down her burning cheeks. Her head spun. "No, please..."
Rowan placed a warm hand at the back of her neck and wiped her tears with the other, shushing her.
"I need Madeleine. I can't do this. Please. Oh, Madeleine..."
Rowan said nothing, merely allowed her to bury her face in his shoulder. She clutched his cloak, almost tearing his fabric with her trembling hands. The tears flowed initially and dried soon after, as if still reflecting the weeks spent weeping after her family's death.
"You're stronger than this," he murmured.
"What have I been fighting for?" she said in a broken voice. "I can't bring Madeleine back with magic. I've been trying to avenge the death of someone who never died to begin with. I killed so many people. What's the point of my life? Why should I even go on?"
Her face scrunched together, but no more tears came.
"I told you before. If you're driven by revenge, you'll lose your purpose. Live for yourself. Fight for what you believe in. Not for someone else. Don't live for someone else."
You really are dumber than a freaking cockroach. Doesn't your own life mean something? You wanted to climb the ladder into a king's mage to make a difference. Doesn't that count for anything? Madeleine's voice echoed from a long time ago. She knew this day would come.
Seiren's chest tightened. How she missed her sister.
"Your life matters. You make a difference. You have a purpose. Don't forget that."
Kori's face, lighting up with delight at her magic, came into her mind's eye. Loren's trust-filled face, promising to see her improvement with chaos magic when they next meet. The grateful Acrisians thanking her for aiding their escape. Loren's legacy, the last trace of chaos magic, flowed in her veins and had healed Rowan's chest.
"I can't go against her. It's treason, but I can't fight against my own mother..."
"Don't flatter yourself, Nithercott. You don't stand a chance against the likes of any of the kings mages on their top form." Kommora's no-nonsense sharp voice came from behind. "If they're crippled then maybe. Or maybe not, even then."
Seiren wiped her dried face and stepped back from Rowan, lips pressed together.
"I don't have time for this. Ashworth, I'll go ahead. We need to crush this before she realises we've broken through." Kommora stalked ahead, her cloak swishing behind her. Maura gave Seiren a tight-lipped look.
"Your father is still dead, Seiren. Don't forget that," she said, throwing a glance at Rowan. She gave him a light punch on the arm before following Kommora. Rowan rubbed his elbow, staring after his sister in confusion.
"I trust you have your runes at the ready, Woodbead," Kommora said to Maura as they stepped through.
"Why? You have your own runes."
"My magic will take its time to come back. The tracker from earlier was something I prepared for emergencies."
Seiren hitched a breath and steeled herself. Father. Madeleine. Whatever the reason was for her mother being alive, Zor Jarsdel was the Hannan that night who had robbed her of a father and a sister. Madeleine depended on her. She couldn't falter yet.
Ashworth knelt down, sketching more runes to wrap around her knives. Her continuous rune began to wane.
"If you're going, you better go now," Ashworth said aloud.
"Don't let Loren's death be in vain. Not after what you've said. I told you about what happened. I'll support you. I was in your shoes only two years ago when I failed my mission in Acrise, the one that dirtied my family's name. Trust your team. You are not alone. " Rowan kissed Seiren on the forehead. She swallowed and nodded. "Now go. Felora and Peron will keep you safe."
"And you?" she said, hesitating. He rumpled her hair, his blue-green eyes bright and crinkled at the edges. She batted his hand away half-heartedly, wiping her eyes with the other.
"I'll be behind you. I need to establish enough of a defect in this first. We'll be needing reinforcements at this rate, against those king's mages."
She nodded and opened her mouth. Be safe, she wanted to say, but the embarrassment of such soppy words made her flush from embarrassment. She turned before he could see her pink face and half-sprinted through the healing defect in the magical barrier, the two aides in her wake.
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